SAN DIEGO – Riding a three-game win streak, the San Diego State men's basketball team hosts the Utah State Aggies, a team it has defeated seven straight times in San Diego on Tuesday night in Viejas Arena. The game is scheduled to tip at 7 p.m. PT and will be broadcast on CBS Sports Network.
OFF THE BOUNCE
Winners of three consecutive games, San Diego State plays a pivotal game with conference and postseason implications on the line when it plays host to Utah State on Tuesday night.
San Diego State, the two-time defending outright conference champions, is currently tied for third-place in the loss column of the Mountain West Conference standings. The Aztecs are (7-3 in league), trailing Wyoming (10-1), Boise State (10-2) and Colorado State (10-3) in the league race.
Following Tuesday night's game, the Aztecs have six games remaining (two at home and four away). Of those six games, one is against conference-leading Wyoming (10-1), one is against second place Boise State (10-2) and two are against fifth-place Fresno State (6-5).
In all, beginning Feb. 4, San Diego State is scheduled to play 11 times (five at home, six away) in the next 30 days (Feb. 4 - Mar. 5).
San Diego State and Utah State are meeting for the 24th time, with the Aztecs owning a 14-9 series lead. Earlier this season, the Aggies handed the Aztecs a 75-57 loss in Logan, Utah on Jan. 26.
The teams have met in the conference tournament title game in each of the last three seasons. The Aggies were crowned champs in 2019 and 2020, while the Aztecs were champions in 2021.
San Diego State owns a 7-1 home record against Utah State, with all games played at Viejas Arena. The Aggies lone win in San Diego came on Nov. 26, 1998 (11th game played in Viejas Arena). The Aztecs have won the last seven home games against Utah State.
San Diego State ran its win streak to three games on Saturday with a 76-64 victory over Air Force. It was the fifth double-digit victory for the Aztecs in conference play this season.
The Aztecs connected on 25-of-40 field goal attempts (62.5 percent). This is the highest field goal percentage for SDSU in a game since Feb. 19, 2013, when SDSU shot 68.2 percent in a home victory over Wyoming. SDSU has now won 87 straight home games when shooting 50 percent or better from the floor.
SDSU also owned a 29-18 advantage on the glass. The Aztecs improved to 31-1 the last 32 times it has had a rebound advantage.
Senior forward Nathan Mensah led the team in scoring (14) and rebounding (6), while connecting on 6-of-7 field goal attempts. This marked his sixth double-digit scoring game of the season and the 26th of his career.
Senior guard Matt Bradley continued his strong play with 13 points, five rebounds and five assists against the Falcons. The Mountain West Conference MVP candidate, has made multiple three-point field goals in five consecutive games and in his last seven games is averaging 22.0 points, 5.7 rebounds, 3.0 assists, 1.3 steals, while connecting on 51-of-94 from the field (54.3 percent) and 20-35 from beyond the arc (57.1 percent).
Junior forward Keshad Johnson had 11 points, 4-of-4 field goals, four rebounds, three assists in the victory Saturday. It was the eighth career double-figure scoring game for Johnson (SDSU is 8-0 in those games), with five of those 10-point scoring outings coming in the last 11 games.
In two of San Diego State's three conference losses, the Aztecs have held a lead inside the final 64 seconds of the game (vs. Boise and at Colorado State). By contrast, three of San Diego State's seven conference victories have come by at least 25 points (Colorado State, UNLV and New Mexico) and five have been by double-figure margins.
That is one reason that in conference play, the two-time defending outright Mountain West Conference champions own the league's best scoring margin in conference play at +8.7 (second is Wyoming at +6.1 and Utah State is third at +5.7).
Since Dec. 8, San Diego State is 10-3 and is tied for 3rd nationally in fewest points allowed (57.0), 4th in opponent field goal percentage (37.5), 7th in opponent two-point field goal percentage (42.2) and 11th in opponent effective field goal percentage (43.9).
Once again this season San Diego State ranks among the nation's best in defense. The Aztecs are 3rd in scoring defense (57.0), 3rd in field goal percentage defense (37.5), 7th in two-point field goal percentage (42.2) and 11th in effective field goal percentage (43.9). In addition, the Aztecs are 2nd in Kenpom adjusted defensive efficiency (85.5).
SDSU head coach Brian Dutcher is in his fifth season as San Diego State's head coach and his 23rd season on the Aztec sidelines. In his four plus seasons as head coach, he has led the Aztecs to four conference titles, a 111-37 overall record and has already been named the national coach of the year and twice named Mountain West Conference Coach of the Year. Among first time head coaches who started in the 2017-18 season, Dutcher's 111 wins are the most and he is the only head coach in the group to reach triple-digit victories.